News Room

Marine ecologist and environmental advocate Jeremy Jackson to discuss the state of the oceans April 27

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. - Jeremy Jackson, marine ecologist and environmental advocate, will give a lecture titled "Brave New Ocean" on Friday, April 27, at 12:30 p.m. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place in Room 216 of McCardell Bicentennial Hall, located on Bicentennial Way off College Street (Route 125). Lunch will be provided.

Overfishing, habitat destruction, global warming and other human-induced activities have contributed to a severe decline in ocean biodiversity, yet public awareness of the changes - and their implications for the future - has been minimal. Jackson will explore these issues in his lecture.

Jackson is a professor of oceanography at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif., and a senior scientist emeritus at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in the Republic of Panama. He is the author of numerous scientific publications and books. His current research includes the long-term impact of human activities on the oceans, coral reef ecology and the ecological and evolutionary consequences of the formation of the Isthmus of Panama.

A Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Jackson has been awarded the Secretary's Gold Medal for Exceptional Service of the Smithsonian Institution in 1997; the University of California San Diego Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Science and Engineering in 2002; and the Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) Foundation's International Award for Research in Ecology and Conservation Biology in 2007. His work on overfishing was chosen by Discover magazine as the outstanding environmental achievement of 2001.

Jackson has actively searched for innovative ways to address declining ocean health by collaborating with the media to inspire public action. Intent on focusing attention on the oceans, he has given talks at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) headquarters, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Woodrow Wilson School.The lecture is sponsored by several Middlebury College organizations, including the Office of Environmental Affairs, Dean of the College, Department of Biology, Rohatyn Center for International Affairs, Atwater Commons and Wonnacott Commons.

For more information regarding the event, contact student organizer Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak at dalabdul@middlebury.edu.